The Bitterest Pill
by Clover80
Summary: Who is Mrs. Mellark? Why is she such an angry, spiteful woman? This is a continuation of her story from "The Things They Left Behind." Read and find out what turns a normal girl into a bitter woman with a twisted heart! I do not own The Hunger Games!
1. Little Children Lost

What Mrs. Mellark left behind was a cemetery full of dead children. A cemetery full of dead children that no one ever talked about; least of all Mrs. Mellark. People thought she was vindictive, hateful, and filled with spite that she took out on her 3 boys and docile husband. She was, but it wasn't because she wanted to be; she was broken, burying a little more of herself every time a shovel full of dirt landed on one of the graves that had been dug to accommodate the body of another child that she loved.

The first child had been only hours old when he left the world. She had been six years old, eagerly anticipating the birth of her first sibling. Back then she hadn't been Mrs. Mellark, or Peeta's mother, she had simply been Vivian. Her mother had been screaming for hours in the back room of her family's little house on the edge of the town square. Her father had sent her outside to play when the apothecary's wife showed up with her bag full of birthing tools and medicinal herbs. She had spent the afternoon playing with the woman's daughter Ruth and the Donner twins, along with little Violet Stone, whose mother owned the only restaurant in town. She was younger and the four six year olds loved "babysitting" her. The girls had spent the afternoon practicing holding and diapering baby dolls in anticipation of Vivian getting to hold her new brother or sister. But now it was night time and her mother was still screaming and groaning in the back of the house. Vivian didn't know what was happening in there but whatever it was it scared her that her mother was screaming so much.

"What's happening to Mama in there?" she asked her father who was pacing nervously back and forth in front of the fireplace that warmed the living room.

"Nothing you need to know about right now, giving birth is woman's business, you'll find out soon enough." Vivian found the answer to be completely unsatisfactory but her father had given her a look that indicated that the subject was not up for discussion. Soon the screaming stopped but instead of hearing a baby's first cry Vivian and her father heard grief stricken wailing coming from the birthing room. Vivian's father ran to the little bedroom and threw open the door. "What's happened?" he asked. Vivian could hear the fear in his voice.

"The baby didn't make it, I'm so sorry Adams," the apothecary's wife said, sadly handing him a little bundle wrapped in a white blanket. "It was a boy." The woman sighed and stood up, stretching her back and leaving the grieving parents to mourn alone for a few minutes. Vivian stood in the doorway, watching her father sadly pull the blanket away from the baby's face and run his finger over the its tiny, white cheek.

"Daddy, can I see him?" Vivian whispered from the doorway.

"Sure princess," he said, sitting down on the bed with her mother and holding her hand. Vivian's mother just sobbed quietly, into the pillows piled behind her. Vivian slowly walked over to her parents and looked down at the tiny, still face of her little brother. She never got the chance to hold him.

He was buried the next day in the District 12 cemetery. Vivian could see that her parents were devastated; her mother had done nothing but cry since yesterday. She didn't even get out of bed to come to the cemetery; her father said she was still too weak. Vivian stood beside the grave holding her father's hand and felt something inside of her break, just a little, a tiny crack opening up in her heart. Babies might die in poverty stricken District 12 every day but Vivian had never known or loved any of them. It would be the first of many cracks to come.

Eventually Vivian would have a little brother, who was born the year she turned eight. His name was Danny and he was pure joy in Vivian's eyes. She would hold him and rock him at night, reluctant to hand him over to her mother or father when it was time for her to go to bed. As he grew from a baby into a little boy Vivian loved nothing more than to play with him when she came home from school and teach him silly games and songs. No one every spoke about the baby that had died two years ago, sometimes Vivian saw her parents staring out of a window at nothing or looking sadly at Danny and she knew they were thinking of him, but they never said a word, and Vivian's heart grew a little colder.

Vivian grew into a pretty young woman who loved to gossip and laugh with her friends and look at boys in the school cafeteria. She still had the same friends that she had when she was little, Ruth Barton, Maysilee and Mary Grace Donner, and Violet Stone who adored the older girls. They spent hours discussing which boys they would grow up and marry, what their futures would be like, how many children they would have. Ruth had lots of boys who liked her but her most ardent would be boyfriend was by far Garret Mellark. He bought her gifts, little trinkets that he found in the Hob, District 12's black-market. His family owned the bakery in the town square and sometimes Garret would bring all four girls cupcakes just so he could talk to Ruth. He never got up the nerve to ask her on a date, he just doted on her and hoped one day she would notice him.

Ruth wasn't interested though, she was in love with Jonah Everdeen, a boy from the Seam, a boy who was therefore, forbidden. Girls from town did not date boys from the Seam. Marrying someone from the Seam would mean being disowned by your friends and family because everyone knew that people in the Seam were poor trash. With their tan skin and black hair they didn't even look like people from the Merchant section of town. They were different, poor, needy, dirty, and woe to the girl who dared to date a Seam boy. Endless ridicule and social isolation waited for any girl who decided to go down that road. Ruth didn't care though, Jonah Everdeen brought an element of danger with him and more than once Vivian and the Donner twins had helped Ruth by covering up her secret "dates" with Jonah. It wasn't really much of a date since Jonah had no money and they couldn't be seen in public but they loved each other's company so an evening spent talking in the meadow was fine with them.

Vivian was secretly a little in love with Jonah herself. She would never say so, she was too shy for that, but he was a nice boy who charmed everyone he came into contact with. He could sing too, and Vivian envied Ruth who said he made up love songs and sang them to her. Some nights all four girls would sneak out of their houses and meet up with Jonah and his friends in the meadow. He regularly brought Haymitch Abernathy, another Seam boy with him and Garret, who followed Jonah around mostly so he could be near Ruth. They called themselves the Night Owls, it was almost like their own little secret club. Haymitch was loud, witty, and handsome. He had no fear of anything and he and Jonah were known to regularly crawl underneath the fence that surrounded District 12 so they could hunt in the woods. Haymitch also liked that it was a way to thumb his nose at the Peace Keepers that patrolled the District and therefore the Capitol itself. All of the girls were a little in love with Haymitch. Garret was quieter, sweeter, and not nearly as daring as his friends. He would never dream of crawling under the fence that formed the boundary of the District, nor would he take dares to throw eggs at peace keepers, release a jar full of crickets in the science lab, or any of the other things that Haymitch and Jonah were notorious for. This made him boring in the eyes of Vivian and her friends, but he was nice enough, in a brotherly, friend sort of way.

Everything changed the year Vivian turned 16. It was the year of the Quarter Quell, and this year the Capitol had decreed that 4 tributes from each District would be sent into the Games instead of the usual two. Vivian was late getting to the Reaping that year and was still pushing her way into the pen of 16 year olds when Maysilee's name was called. Mary Grace screamed and Ruth went deathly pale, her hands shaking from shock. Vivian pushed through the crowd towards her friends and squeezed Maysilee's hand as she exited the pen and made her way to the stage. The three girls huddled together, crying quietly, Mary Grace kept on her feet by Ruth and Vivian. Everyone seemed to hold their breath as the escort drew the second girl's name from the Reaping ball. "Violet Stone!" the blue haired woman said, just a little too cheerfully. "Could it get any worse?" Vivian whispered to Ruth. Ruth didn't answer; she just looked at the stage in mute horror. It did get worse. The first male tribute chosen was Haymitch. The second was a boy named Keyser that Vivian knew of, but didn't know personally.

The next few weeks were some of the worst weeks of Vivian's life. She, Mary Grace, and Ruth skipped school almost every day to hide in Jonah's house and watch the Games. Sometimes there wasn't school because viewing was mandatory and they would all gather in the square and watch the games on the big screen that had been erected there. Keyser died in the bloodbath and Violet died on her second day in the arena. Violet's mother and Keyser's sister went a little insane after that and Keyser's mother died within the year. Haymitch and Maysilee became allies and Mary Grace collapsed when Maysilee was skewered by pink birds with razor sharp beaks. She didn't see her sister die in Hay itch's arms. Maysilee and Haymitch had just broken off their alliance so they wouldn't have to kill each other and Mary Grace never forgave Haymitch for letting her sister walk away from him to her death.

Things changed after that-Maysilee came home in a box and was buried in the tribute cemetery, the number 50 engraved on her headstone. Ruth ran off one night with Jonah and got married. Her parents were horrified and Vivian was forbidden from speaking to her. Mary Grace developed debilitating headaches and went into an unending depression. She spent a good bit of time in bed or staring into space, her feelings numbed by morphling. By the time Haymitch came home a Victor only Vivian and Garret remained of his group of friends. He tried to apologize to Mary Grace, but she stared right through him. Then his family died in a fire and Haymitch lost himself in a bottle. Vivian's heart broke five times that summer: first when Violet died, again when Maysilee followed her into the grave, a third time when she lost Ruth and Jonah, a fourth when Mary Grace turned into a withdrawn morphling addict, and a fifth time when Haymitch stopped coming out of his house because he was too drunk. There were no more Night Owls. All that was left of her friends was Garret. Thrown together by death and destruction they spent most of their free time together. Vivian didn't love him, not in a romantic way; she loved him deeply as a friend and when he proposed she was shocked but thought, "Why not? I could do worse."

By then her heart had so many cracks in it that she wasn't sure she would ever be able to fall in love anyway. At least with Garret she would be safe and well cared for. She would have enough to eat and he made her laugh, maybe that was enough. For a while it was, but in the back of her mind she always wondered if she was just a substitute for Ruth in Garret's heart and what it would be like to live with the love of your life in the Seam, starving but happy. Jealousy had taken root in those cracks in her heart and over the years it would grow and destroy the heart that held it.


	2. Night Owls Remember

As told by Vivian…

Six years went by and suddenly I found myself with a house and a husband and a bakery and two little boys. I was pregnant with my third child and I hoped the baby was a little girl and then everything would be perfect. Almost. I have a beautiful family-two strong boys and soon maybe a sweet little girl to dote on. Although, there are those things that mar my otherwise happy life, things I try not to think about in the dark of night while Garret snores beside me and I stare at the ceiling, trying to block out the thoughts and fears that keep me awake. "What if Garret doesn't really love me? What if he's still in love with Ruth?" and "One day my boys could be reaped, they could go into the Games, just like Maysilee and Haymitch," and my heart pounds in fear. "For that matter Danny could still be reaped, he has two more years until he's no longer eligible for the Games…" on and on all night long the thoughts run through my head. I can't sleep anyway, the baby kicks all night long and every time I doze off a foot hits me in the ribs. Danny has been helping Garret in the bakery for the past two weeks, the baby is due in 8 weeks and I'm exhausted. I hope my boys grow up to be like him. He's handsome, smart, a great uncle who loves to play with my boys, and the sweetest brother I could ask for. I don't want to lose him, and the fear is only made worse by the fact that today is the Reaping.

The alarm clock by the bed goes off and interrupts my thoughts, and Garret starts flailing around in the bed attempting to turn it off. He finally locates it and slams the little button on top of it down then picks it up to wind it and set it for tomorrow morning. He sits up and looks down at me, brushing the hair out of my face. I smile and reach up to catch his hand and put it to my lips. I look at him smiling down at me and try to forget that two kids will be sent to their deaths today but he knows my thoughts and squeezes my hand tightly in his before getting out of bed and heading to the bathroom. I get up and throw my robe around my shoulders and shuffle downstairs to unlock the side door for Danny. He still lives across the street in the house where I grew up above the clothing and fabric store our parents run. Danny has been coming over before school to help Garret get the bread and other goods made for the day. I walk out of the door and across the yard to the hencoop in the back of our house to get fresh eggs for breakfast. The eggs that we order from District 10 are strictly for baking and have to be accounted for very carefully so we keep our own chickens for personal use. I find 6 eggs under the hens and stoop over to pick up the milk bottle left by Ronnie Cooper, the boy who delivers milk for the dairy. I shuffle back up the stairs and start to make breakfast for Garret and Danny, two fried eggs each on a slice of yesterday's bread and some strawberries smuggled in from the forest that Jonah sold Garret earlier in the week. I pour two glasses of milk from the bottle and sit them on the table just as Danny walks up the stairs and into the kitchen.

His face lights up when he sees me (or maybe when he sees breakfast) and he hurries over and gives me a quick hug before he sits down and begins to eat. Garret comes in, freshly showered and ready to eat. We're fortunate, our house has running water and a shower, it's an old shower and the pipes make terrible noises when you turn on the hot water, but it's more than many of our neighbors have. People in the seam have to get water from one of the two communal wells and do their business in outhouses out near the alleys. Our kitchen is electric, which is a real luxury. Most people in 12 cook on old cast iron wood stoves. Ruth and Jonah have one of those in their kitchen and she tells me that it's unbearably hot in their house in the summer because she has to keep the fire going to cook. She comes into town every now and then to buy things and always stops in to see me. She's the only friend I have left since Mary Grace stays holed up in her room injecting herself with large quantities of morphling and Haymitch drinks himself into a stupor on a daily basis.

Thinking of Haymitch makes me angry and uneasy. He's District 12's only living Victor now and the only mentor that our tributes have. Since he spends most of his time so drunk that he can't see straight our tributes don't stand much of a chance in the Games. It's pretty hard to give your tributes advice or get sponsors for them if you're passed out on a bed somewhere. I get it, I know why he drinks, I saw what he went through and I felt Maysilee's death as much as he did, but still, he's responsible for children's _lives_. I spend the next few hours feeding the boys and getting us all cleaned up and dressed to go to the Reaping. Around 9:30 my parents and Danny walk across the street to our house and we all go out to the square for this year's "festivities." Danny leaves us and goes to check in and take his place with the other sixteen year-olds. Garret and my dad each hold one of the boys and we take our places in the crowd. At precisely 10:00 the mayor and District 12's escort, Esmerelda Rouge walk out onto the stage. The mayor looks around nervously and whispers something into the ear of one of the peace keepers on the stage. The man leaves and returns with Haymitch stumbling in front of him. He collapses in the chair next to Esmerelda who jumps up and practically runs to the microphone that is sitting at the front of the stage. She welcomes us all and wishes us "Happy Hunger Games!" before starting the video we see every year where some long dead president reads the Treaty of Treason. Finally she approaches the two balls filled with children's names and plunges her hand into the girl's ball. "This year's female tribute will be Daisy Rivas!" All of the girls in the fourteens section start to back away from a Seam girl dressed in a red flowered dress. She bursts into tears and is escorted to the stage by two peace keepers. Esmerelda makes her way to the boy's ball and pulls out a slip of paper. She smiles as she prepares to make her announcement "This year's male tribute will be Danny O'Rourke!"

I feel my legs give out and Garret grabs me and holds me up. I follow my parents in a daze to the visiting rooms in the Justice Building to say goodbye to my little brother. How could this happen? His name was only in the reaping ball four times! I don't remember much of what was said, everyone was crying and my dad was telling Danny to stay strong and I was sitting on the sofa holding my little brother's hand when suddenly the door burst open. Mary Grace Donner, well, Undersee now that she's married to the Mayor (his ability to constantly supply her with morphling outweighing his less desirable qualities) stumbles into the room. "Take this!" she says, holding her closed fist out to me. I hold out my own hand and she drops Maysilee's gold Mockingjay pin into it. It was her token in the arena. I just stare at Mary Grace with my mouth hanging open, not understanding why she would want me to take this horrible reminder of what happened to Maysilee. Mary Grace looks at me and opens and closes her eyes very slowly, as if she is trying to maintain control while talking to a small child. "Put it on Danny. Haymitch will know what it is, trust me, the second he sees that thing he'll get the message."

"What is the message?" I ask.

"The message is that he had better get that boy out of there. He couldn't save my sister, he couldn't save little Violet, he better sober up and get Danny out of there. We've lost enough Vivian; we shouldn't have to lose Danny too. I lost my sister, I know how it feels; every day it feels like your heart has been set on fire and never stops burning. I don't want anyone else to feel that. We're going to send Haymitch a message; we Night Owls that are left are counting on him.


	3. Remember Who You Were

I do not own The Hunger Games!

Short Chapter I know but it seemed like the natural breaking point!

When the peace keepers finally force us out of the visiting room I spy Haymitch loitering near the back door of the Justice Building waiting to put the tributes on the train to the Capitol. "Haymitch!" I yell across the lobby. He looks up at me, disoriented and two peace keepers take a step forward as if to prevent any trouble. Haymitch stumbles across the room and they back off.

"Vivian," he slurs "I'm so sorry about your brother."

"You'd better bring him home Haymitch," I say in a biting tone.

"You want me to bring him home you'd better find some way to raise sponsor money," he says, seeming to sober up a little.

"You don't worry about me raising sponsor money here in the District," I tell him, "you make sure you find some rich old lady in the Capitol that thinks he's just the cutest thing she's ever seen, understand?" I jab my finger into his chest which only serves to emphasize my desperation. "You sober up and look inside yourself until you find the Haymitch that used to be my friend. The Haymitch who was wickedly smart, knew how to get around the rules, and who could charm the pants off of anyone. You find that person somewhere inside this mess you've become and then you become that person again and bring my little brother home, do you understand me? If you don't I'll kill you myself!"

Haymitch sighs. "Viv, I'll do my best. That person you're talking about-he died a long time ago."

"Haymitch Abernathy you have always found a way to do anything you wanted to do, legal or otherwise and you can do this!" I shrieked at him. He glanced at the peace keepers who were still standing nearby and next words came out in a hiss and rose to an angry yell.

"No Vivian, I haven't always found a way to do anything I want. I wanted to keep Maysilee alive and I couldn't! Then I wanted to keep my family safe and provide for them when I came home and I couldn't do that either. Then I thought my last hope at redemption might be to keep one of my tributes alive, just one, I just wanted to bring home one kid alive, not in a box and I haven't been able to do that either! Don't tell me how smart I am and how untouchable I am because those things got people killed! Being smart and finding ways around the rules cost me my family, my friends, everything! That Haymitch is dead! Dead do you hear me? Dead and he's never ever coming back!"

Garret started to pull me away. Haymitch was red in the face, his fists clenched by his sides and a feral look in his eyes. "I'll try to get Danny out of there Vivian, but don't bother trying to kill me if I don't; I'm already dead." He turned around and stomped out of the back door of the building and Garret pulled me out the front door to join my parents. That night we did what so many other families had done before us. We went home, pulled down all of the shades and closed the drapes, turned on the TVs, and sat down to a meal that nobody ate. We were officially in mourning.


	4. A trip down memory Lane or The Underworl

The next few days passed in a blur of grief. Garret got up and baked bread, I somehow pulled myself out of bed to help him since Danny wasn't there to help out. I took care of our two boys who kept asking where Uncle Danny was. My parents ran their clothing store and watched coverage of the pre-Games events on the little TV set behind the counter. We had watched the Tribute Parade together in the square where I had spent so much time watching Maysilee and Haymitch's games. The costumes were interesting this year: District 1 who produced luxury goods and gems were dressed as a king and queen straight out of the Middle Ages. The girl wore a high wasted green velvet dress with a cream colored silk underskirt and the boy wore hose and short pants with a jeweled waistcoat in the same green velvet as the girl. They both had sparkling crowns on their heads and the girl held a scepter in one arm while the boy held a ball topped with a golden cross. Someone's stylist had been studying the history books! District 2 was dressed like Greek warriors or gladiators with what looked like lion skins draped over their heads and shoulders. District 3 glowed blue, representing electricity itself. District four were dressed as Kelpies, mythical sea creatures with the tail of a fish and the body and head of a horse. Their stylists had done a beautiful job of making it look as if the tributes were transforming into the animals before their very eyes. District 5 was dressed in some sort of silver suits with a glowing red light on their head dress. Something to do with power plants poor kids. District 6 rode out in a chariot that looked like a race car and the tributes were the drivers. Unfortunately the helmets and goggles covered up their faces completely. District 7 was interesting-the girl's dress was made completely of woven pine needles tinged with white and silver glitter, making her look like a tree that had been lightly kissed with snow. The boy was dressed as Pan, an ancient goat-legged god of the wild. He cared for the forest and shepherds and animals and played a reed pipe like the one the boy was laughingly holding to his lips. He was shirtless with fur covered legs and shoes that looked like hooves and two goat horns rose out of his wild hair. He and the girl in the chariot with him looked as if they were having a good time. He "played" his pipe and danced and laughed and she swayed along to the music waving her silvery boughs at the audience. Those costumes would be noticed; those kids would have sponsors. District 8 came out dressed in fine embroidered silk; their costumes reminded me of clothes from the ancient Orient that I had seen in a book in District 12's run down library. The girl's black hair was done up in two buns on the side of her head and the boys was cut blunt and straight above his ears. The District 9 tributes dressed in rippling amber fabric that blew back behind them in waves in the wind. The girl's dress had fringe that looked like stalks of grain and similar fringe was hanging from the band in her hair. The boy wore a woven crown of wheat while the girl wore a woven band of it that trailed fringe that looked like wheat down into her long brown hair. The kids and costumes had then been sprinkled with gold glitter and the effect was stunning. It didn't hurt that the boy was bug and burly and that the girl had a pretty face and beautiful long hair. District 10, poor kids, their stylist dressed them as fighting roosters. They had beautiful head and tail feathers and spikes imbedded in their "beaks" and "claws". Poor District 11 are dressed in fruit hats and overalls. Totally unoriginal, poor kids, no chances with the sponsors. Then it's time for Danny to come onscreen. My whole family gathers together on the bench down front that's been saved for us and Daisy's family sits on the next one over. Together we watch the District 12 Tributes enter the city circle. Their stylist has chosen a risky and almost frightening story line for their costumes. Daisy is clearly Persephone rising out of the underworld of the mines. Her platform in the chariot is elevated so the audience can see her legs are covered in coal dust and so is the bottom of her dress which is bursting with living flowers; most prominantly daisies to go with her name. Danny has been cast as Hades, lord of the Underworld who is relinquishing his wife for a season from the darkness of the underworld of the mines. Danny is covered in coal dust that glitters eerily in the light. He carries a pickaxe over his shoulder that is wound about with daisy chains. His eyes flash red and silver and black, depending on how the light hits them. They have cast my brother as death who is compromising with life and allowing his wife an escape. I wonder how that message will sit with President Snow. In the middle of Danny's belt that holds up his pants the mockingjay pin shines out for all to see. I wonder if anyone will recognize it. The crowd goes wild over Danny and Daisy or more aptly Persephone and Hades. Hopefully that means the sponsor money will be rolling in.

The next day Haymitch is interviewed on TV by Cesar Flickerman along with all of the other mentors about their take on last night's parade. The District 1 mentors ohh and ahh over their tributes royal entrance. Brutus and Lyme from District 2 give some war whoops and talk about how the lion hides made them look especially vicious. Beetee and Wiress from District 3 seem quietly pleased with their tributes clever costumes, which consisted of a bodysuit that emitted a pulsating blue light. District 4 raved about the artistry that the stylist put into the costumes and how clever she was to have thought of using the kelpie legend as part of a costume. "Kelpies are dangerous creatures you know," Old Mags said. "They look beautiful and want you to ride on them but they pull you down into the waves so that you will never escape the depths of the ocean." Five didn't have much to say about his kids electrical beacon costumes and six had even less to say about his racecar drivers. Old Woof and his newest Victor Cecelia said that their costumes were to represent the fine silks that were made in ancient china and can now be made in District 8. The District 9 mentors said that they were happy with the "Amber waves of grain" theme. District 10 did not like the fighting rooster look and Chaff was none to thrilled with the fruity farmer look his kids had been given. Then Haymitch came onto the screen. He looked clean shaven for once and well put together in a dark suit and tie. His eyes were red but other than that you would never know he had been on a bender the night before.

"So Haymitch," Cesar begins what did you think of the whole Persephone fleeing Hades and the underworld of the mines story being carried out by your tributes? Haymitch looks at him, considering his next move and says "She wasn't fleeing him Cesar he was taking her to freedom. He loved her, his pickaxe was covered in her flowers, but he sacrificed himself so that she could be free and alive. In District 12 we all dream of being free from the mines, it's backbreaking dangerous work, If you can win the games you can escape those mines, escape Hades and the underworld and live in the light and the sun, live free as a Victor. That's what the story is telling you. That my tributes would sacrifice themselves in order to escape the underworld of the mines. Even the King of the Underworld himself might want out of there every now and then.

"I saw the mockingjay pin on Danny's belt, wasn't that the same pin worn by your ally Maysilee Donner in your games Haymitch?" Cesar asks.

Haymitch grimaces before he answers. "Yeah. Danny's sister was friends with Maysilee and her twin so they passed it on to Danny as a reminder to me to work hard to keep Danny alive in the area for as long as I can."

"Sounds like you've got your hands full here and back at home huh?" Cesar says and laughs.

"You have no idea Cesar, you have no idea…" Haymitch mumbles as the buzzer goes off.

Good. Haymitch has noticed the pin. He knows what it means. We don't want a repeat of Maysilee. That night for the first time I get a full night's sleep.

Apparently the interview with Haymitch and Danny and Daisy's costumes have generated enough interest in the Capitol for them to send a film crew all the way out to District 12. The camera tech, a young woman named Cressida isn't half bad. It's our escort Esmerelda who traveled all the way back here to show her support and run the interviews that's the problem. She scares everyone off with her bright yellow and green hair and long sharp nails painted to match. She latches onto me and makes a big deal out of how I'm Danny's pregnant big sister who just wants him to come home so he can meet his new niece or nephew. She gets my poor father to say that his boy is young and strong and smart and that he hopes that will get him far. She tries to interview Mary Grace Donner about the Mockingjay pin she gave to Danny as his District token and all she says is that she hopes that it brings better luck to Maysilee's friend's brother than it did to Maysilee. That was a bold face lie. Mary Grace gave him the pin as a reminder of what happens when you get careless with your tributes in the arena. It's a reminder that we're all still here, watching, counting on him to bring back Danny since he couldn't bring back Maysilee or even little Violet. He didn't even bring back his real self, the Haymitch that we had all loved had disappeared. In his place there was a broken, empty, bitter shell of a young man.


	5. Heavenly Creatures

Garret and I spent the next three days trying to raise money for Danny and Daisy. Everyone from the merchant side of town donated money. People from the Seam trickled into the bakery donating whatever they could spare. Miners on their way home from work would stop in and give a few dollars to the tribute fund and Garret would send them home with loaves of bread or cookies for their kids. Danny used to like to make the cookies. He made all kinds-oatmeal raisin, sugar cookies with colored icing, spicy ginger cookies, and even chocolate chip if we could afford the chocolate. When Danny was little and Haymitch won his games the bakery would get chocolate on parcel day and Danny developed a life- long love of chocolate. Jonah and Ruth came in and gave what they could. They stayed and talked for a while and Garret filled a large sack with bread and sweet rolls and muffins made with wild blueberries that Jonah had picked in the woods. We were making small talk about the size of the tribute fund and Ruth's unofficial apothecary business in the Seam when Mary Grace walked in the door. "Here," she said, thrusting a large envelope filled to bursting with money. "This is for Danny and the girl."

Ruth, Jonah, Garret and I all just gaped at her, our mouths hanging open. "Mary Grace, where did you get this kind of money?" I whispered, stunned.

"Haymitch. He brought it to me after Maysilee…" she trailed off. "I told him I didn't want it, that it wouldn't bring her back. He made me keep it. Told me I might need it someday. I never knew what to do with it. It felt wrong to use it, like it was blood money. But I think this is the right time."

"I, thank you Mary Grace," I stammered. She just nodded grimly. I looked around the room. The last time we had all been in the same room rooting for a tribute was six years ago and we didn't know who to pull for. We didn't want to lose Haymitch or Maysilee or little Violet. Now here we were again. Older, sadder, and once again desperately hoping to hold onto someone we loved.

…

The night of the interviews my family gathered together in the square to watch the coverage on the big screen. Most of the merchant side of town was there and Ruth and Jonah came over and sat down behind us. She reached up and gave my hand a squeeze as Cesar Flickerman appeared on the screen. I saw my mother, who had forbidden me to socialize with Ruth after she married Jonah look behind her at the two of them and give Ruth a sad smile. I guess tonight the differences between Seam and Town weren't such a big deal. It was yet another thing that reminded me of Haymitch and Maysilee's games, how everyone came together and our differences melted away. I had spent most of their games in the square too; sitting on a bench with Ruth, Jonah, Garret, Mary Grace. Mary Grace was the only one of the "Night Owls" missing this evening. She must be watching the interviews from her house. Maybe she's too doped up on morphling to even notice. I hadn't seen her since she brought the money to the bakery. The similarities to her sister's games was probably too much for her.

I scanned the tributes sitting in a semi-circle around the stage. Haymitch had called the mayor's house last night and told him and Mary Grace that Danny and Daisy wanted to ally with the tributes from District 7. Both the boy and the girl from seven were older, 17 or 18 and both were lean and strong looking. Haymitch said that they had both worked in the forests and lumber yards after school. Years of chopping down trees and carrying lumber had given them long, ropy muscles. They had the sandy hair and freckles typical of District 7 with big brown eyes. Daisy and Danny were sitting at the end of the row of tributes as they would be the last two to be interviewed. Danny was wearing a black tuxedo with a green vest and bow tie that matched Daisy's short green and white dress which spread out over her legs in folds that looked like flower petals. A clever play on her name I suppose. Her stylist had woven real daisies into her hair which hung down her back. "Good," I thought. "No crazy hair dos, no overly sexy dresses, no caked on makeup." They both looked nice and normal and attractive.

It felt like the interviews before Danny and Daisy's took forever. Time crawled by as tribute after tribute sat beside Cesar Flickerman and tried to charm the audience. The Careers did their typical intimidating of the other tributes, District 3 played up their brains, the girl from 6 and the boy from 8 both seemed a little crazy and the boy from 10 was obviously mentally slow. How unfair to put a child like that in the arena! The pair from 7, who would be allying with our tributes both seemed like sharp, nice kids. Not particularly memorable, but capable. Finally it was Daisy's turn. She smiled and joked with Cesar about her dress and her name. She told him that her stylists were calling her the "Flower Goddess." The audience loved that and it turned out to be a great move on her part because it gave her a memorable nickname throughout the rest of the games. Then it was Danny's turn. Cesar, bless the man, welcomed him as the Lord of the Underworld, which gave him a recognizable nickname too. Danny and Cesar laughed about the nickname and Danny joked that he and the flower Goddess weren't the only mythical creatures going into the arena. There would be a tree nymph and the god Pan, (their allies from seven) and two kelpies, (the tributes from four).

"So, will there be an alliance between these mythical beings in the arena?" Cesar asked.

"I can't tell you Cesar, but maybe some of us heavenly beings will combine our powers," Danny answered, grinning.

"Ahh, was it your heavenly powers that earned you an 8 in training?" Cesar queried.

"Possibly," Danny said with a devilish look on his face. The audience was eating it up. Maybe Daisy and I will turn out to be the Gods of the Arena!"

"Well then certainly no one will mess with you," Cesar joked, "who would want to take on a god?" The buzzer rang and the audience was on their feet.

"Thank you Haymitch," I whispered. So far Haymitch had done his job. He'd given the kids a way to be memorable to the audience which would only serve to get them sponsors. Maybe he could get Danny out of the arena after all.


	6. Let the Games Begin

That night I hardly slept, all I could think about was Danny in the arena. Danny getting skewered by a Career during the bloodbath. Danny being eaten alive by giant pink birds like the ones that killed Maysilee. Danny getting his skull smashed in by the crazy girl from 6 who had said she thought maces seemed like nice weapons and had wondered aloud what a skull would look like after it had been bashed in by a mace. The baby growing inside me must have sensed my anxiety because it squirmed around all night, relentlessly pushing and kicking out with its small feet. I gave up trying to sleep and started puttering around the house. I made myself a snack and sat down in the living room to watch the pre-Games coverage on the TV. Claudius Templesmith and some late night fill in for Cesar Flickerman were discussing the betting odds of all of the tributes. The fact that people bet on the lives of children sickens me. Danny apparently had pretty good odds-6:1. Not bad. I heated up some milk in the kitchen and added some cinnamon and honey to it and walked over to the window to see what was playing on the big screen in the square. Different shots of pre-Games parties flashed across the screen as the Capitol celebrated. I sat back down on the sofa and watched the Capitol's sick version of entertainment, highlights of past games, victory tours and who knows what else until I finally dozed off.

When I woke up the sun was already high in the sky and the smell of fresh bread baking filled my nostrils and made my stomach growl. I looked over at the TV and realized that it would be about an hour and a half before the start of the games according to the little clock in the corner of the screen. I ran downstairs to find Garret pulling the last of the morning's loaves out of the oven. "I slept late, I'm sorry, I would have helped you," I said.

"No problem," he answered, wiping his brow with his shirtsleeve. "Your father stopped in and helped. Said he couldn't sleep. You'd better run along and get ready if you want to watch outside. Your mom has the boys, she's managed to feed them and get them into clean clothes. My mom, she was the sweetest person I knew. Her son would be fighting for his life in a few hours and she still found it in herself somewhere to help out with her grandchildren. I hurried upstairs and jumped in the shower and was quickly followed by Garret. When we felt like we looked presentable we walked over to Mom and Dad's house to retrieve the boys and then headed down the street to the square. It seemed like everyone in the District was gathered there and we hurried to the benches upfront that had been saved for the tribute's families.

Cesar Flickerman and Claudius Templesmith had taken their places in their cushy chairs overlooking the control room where the game techs scurried around like little ants making sure everything was in order so that the horror that was about to unfold on television screens all across Panem was broadcast perfectly. Suddenly the screen went dark and the anthem began to play. We were seeing things from a tribute's perspective from a camera located somewhere in their launching device. As the tribute rose on their plate the arena became clear. The camera had been located behind the girl from District 1 who had dressed as a queen in the tribute parade. The environment that surrounded the tributes was strange, it was a swampy forest, almost a marsh land but it was cold. Puddles had frozen over between the tributes and the Cornucopia and frost covered the grass and hanging vines. The tributes themselves were dressed in black, waterproof, knee high boots and thick waterproof, fleece lined pants. They all wore heavily lined and insulated denim jackets and leather gloves. They had nothing on their heads. Hats must be found in the cornucopia and the kids would be lucky to get one as the head is where the body loses heat from the fastest.

I scanned the circle for Danny. He was standing about halfway around the circle between one of his allies, the boy from 7, and a weak looking girl from 10. Poor thing, she was probably only 12. My parents clung to each other as the countdown began. I gripped Garrets hand and was surprised to feel another hand grip my free one. I looked over into the face of Ruth who smiled grimly. I squeezed her hand as tightly as I did Garret's and together we watched the seconds tick by on the clock above the cornucopia. "Daisy is over there," Ruth said and pointed near the top of the circle. She was surrounded by Careers on both sides, Careers who might lose sponsors to her because she had made a name for herself and who wouldn't be happy about it.

Finally the buzzer sounded and Claudius announced the beginning of the 56th Hunger Games. Tributes leapt off of their pedestals and either ran straight into the melee at the Cornucopia or away from it as fast as their legs could carry them. Apparently Danny, Daisy, and the two from seven had a plan. The kids converged in the middle grabbing whatever weapons they could along the way. Danny had grabbed a large club and Daisy had a quarterstaff. Telis, the girl from 7 had picked up a large serrated hunting knife which she was swinging back and forth in front of her as she ran towards the others. Her district partner and our tribute's other ally whose name was Heft had reached the mouth of the Cornucopia and had picked up two sets of throwing axes that went into a belt that crisscrossed across his chest. He found another longer axe and picked that up too. Danny and the others had also reached the pile of weapons and Heft tossed Danny a short sword. The boys, now both armed circled around the girls, fighting off anyone who came near them while they dug through the pile of supplies. The Careers had also reached the mouth of the Cornucopia and they were grabbing weapons left and right. The two from four grabbed tridents and spears and turned to fight. The boys from two and one, typical meatheads went straight for the heavy swords. The girl from one looked around until she found two sparkling, silver rapiers. They were lighter than the boy's battle swords but just as deadly. The girl from two fastened a blade belt around her waist and grabbed another belt full of throwing stars and cinched it around her arm. Telis and Daisy had managed to hoist two huge backpacks onto their backs and were currently digging for more weapons. Daisy found three knives two of which she slid into her belt, the other into the top of her boot. Telis grabbed what looked like a short handled scythe with a curved blade, it was a thresher. She eyed it wickedly and turned around to grab a hatchet that she had spotted in a box to her right. But before she could grab it someone slammed into her body. It was that crazy looking girl from 6 and she was looking at Telis with bloodlust in her eyes. She had a large knife in her hand and she swiped at Telis with it. She cut Telis's arm and blood began to seep through her jacket. Telis didn't even flinch. She parried the girl's next swing with her hooked thresher and cut the girl from six's hand from her arm. The girl began to scream in horror as blood poured down onto her coat and pants and into the dirt. She fell to her knees and kept screaming. Telis quickly snatched up the hatchet she had wanted and yelled to the boys that it was time to go. Danny and Heft had been fighting the boy from 1 but the girl from 6's screams provided the perfect distraction. Daisy heaved a bedroll at Danny, grabbed her quarter staff and all four kids began to run. The boy that Danny and Heft had been fighting realized his prey was escaping him and gave chase for a few seconds before he slammed into the girl from 11 and decided to skewer her with his sword instead of chasing after four well armed kids.

Danny and his friends kept running until they were deep in the frozen swamp. "Do you think we should stop?" Daisy asked, panting. "We could climb up on that little hill there where it's dryer and go through our supplies."

"Yes, please let's stop for a little bit, my arm's really hurting," Telis said, "and I'm feeling kind of dizzy."

"She's losing too much blood!" Heft said, looking a little panicked. Danny laid a hand on Heft's shoulder.

"Sure, we'll stop. We all need a rest and we need to get a good look at that arm." Heft visibly relaxed and all four kids slogged up the little hill. The day was grey and foggy and the thick trees and hanging vines and moss made it hard to see. I bet this place was alive with insects and greenery in the summer but right now it was quiet, grey, and icy cold. Telis sat down shivering, holding her wounded arm close to her body while the others dug through the packs. Daisy pulled a winter hat out of one and put it on Telis's head.

"It will keep you from losing more body heat," she explained. "I don't want you to go into shock from blood loss so it's important that we keep you warm. Telis just nodded weakly and smiled. Daisy dug through one pack while the boys dug through the other. Daisy's bag contained extra gloves, the hat that Telis was wearing, a thermal blanket, a canteen, iodine tablets, two packages of crackers, dried beef, a flashlight, and extra batteries. They boy's pack had another hat, extra socks, an empty water bottle, more iodine tablets, a sleeping bag, some rope, matches, and a first aid kit. They also had the bedroll that Daisy had tossed to Danny as they were leaving the cornucopia.

"We need to set up camp somewhere" Danny said looking around. "This spot is too out in the open. How about over there where those boulders are sort of up against each other and the ground is higher. There's a tree too between the rocks and the water if we had to get to higher ground really quick."

"Looks good to me," said Heft. The girls agreed and the kids lugged everything over to the place where the boulders met.

"Hey! This is even better than I thought!" Heft said excitedly. It's three boulders and they make a little cave! Do you think we can make a little fire in here? The smoke will go out through the cracks in the top and there's so much fog that the smoke probably won't be noticed. We could drag some branches out of the water and make a blind so that you can't see the flames from the front."

"Great!" chirped Daisy. You boys work on that while I take care of Telis's arm. Daisy sat Telis down against one of the rocks and opened the first aid kit. It contained bandages, a little bottle of rubbing alcohol, black nylon thread, a needle, fever pills and some burn ointment. There was also another little bottle of iodine tablets for purifying water. "First things first," Daisy said to Telis. We need some clean water. She dug the empty water bottle out of one of the backpacks and ran down to the edge of the water and filled it up. She brought it back and dropped one of the iodine tablets into it and sat it on the ground to wait. "Telis, I'm going to need you to take off your coat so I can see your arm ok?" Daisy said softly. Telis nodded and emitted a small whimper as Daisy extracted her arm from her coat. The cut was deep and still bleeding. "Well, the good news is it's not all the way to the bone. The bad news is you're going to need stitches." Telis looked like she might faint. Daisy gathered up the supplies while she waited for the water to purify. When enough time had passed she rinsed the wound and then poured some of the rubbing alcohol over it. Telis shrieked.

"What are you doing to her?" Heft asked, running over.

"I'm sterilizing the wound." Daisy said. "Then I'm going to stitch it up." Heft nodded and backed away, once again helping Danny construct the blind. Next Daisy opened a package containing an alcohol wipe and cleaned her own hands with it as well as the needle. She threaded the black nylon thread into the needle and tied a neat knot in the end of it. "This is going to hurt a little ok Telis? But if we don't stitch it up it won't heal and it will get infected," Daisy told the girl in a matter of fact voice. Telis nodded and gritted her teeth. Daisy slowly began to stitch a row of neat, black x's up Telis's arm. When she was finished Telis's cut was closed and a neat row of eight stitches marched up her arm. Daisy poured a little more alcohol over the stitches, dried it with a strip of bandage, and then wound the arm with a clean roll of bandages covering the wound.

"How did you learn how to do that?" Telis asked Daisy.

"There's a woman who lives near me, her name is Ruth Everdeen and she did the same thing to me when I cut my arm open with a kitchen knife."

Around us the audience chuckled in relief. Ruth blushed and Jonah said "That's my girl! Always helping people! Now you're famous! She said your name on TV!" he teased. She swatted at him playfully. The brief moment of silliness in the square was interrupted by the booming of cannons. The bloodbath was over. The main screen had split into several parts once tributes had started fleeing the Cornucopia. One had been showing the fighting there, and the others had been showing coverage of the various tributes as they spread throughout the arena. We had been watching Danny and Daisy's group on one of these smaller break -away screens. The crowd was silent as they counted the cannon blasts. There were nine. Nine children died for the entertainment of the Capitol.

The Careers predictably were all still alive. They had started a fire near the Cornucopia but had backed far enough away that the hovercrafts could come in and retrieve the bodies of the fallen. I saw that the red-haired girl from six that Telis had wounded was among them. Danny and Heft had gotten a fairly natural looking blind built and had started a fire between the rocks. Daisy got Telis to eat some of the meat and crackers and to drink some water but the poor girl was exhausted and freezing. Daisy made Telis take one of the fever pills before she would let her go to sleep because they were also anti-inflamatories and pain killers. Weak ones, but they would give the girl some relief. The group agreed to give Telis the bedroll that Danny had carried and she lay down in it beside the fire and was soon asleep. They decided to keep watch in twos. Diana volunteered to stay up and so did both Danny and Heft. Danny pointed out that Heft would want to take care of Telis during their watch (we had all noticed how protective he was of her) and Heft agreed to go to sleep. He crawled into the other sleeping bag and Danny and Daisy wrapped themselves in the thermal blanket and sat up to watch the night.


	7. Whispered Secrets

Since Danny and Daisy were safe for the moment the crowd in the square started to break up and go home. Nothing much was happening on the screen, the Careers hadn't even decided to go hunting for the night; instead they were eating and laughing about those who had died in the bloodbath and bragging about their kill counts. "Well," Garret sighed, "they made it through day one."

"They also made it through without getting hurt," Ruth chimed in, "and they have supplies and weapons which is better than we can usually hope for."

"There's also sponsor money," said a quiet voice behind us. We all turned and saw Mary Grace standing behind the rows of benches, her hands clenched into fists. "Haymitch called, Danny and Daisy's alliance with District 7 is generating a lot of interest. He's working with the District 7 mentor, that kid from a few years ago named Blight that won by setting all those traps that impaled the other tributes. He also said that a camera crew was coming so we had better be ready to do some interviews. Oh, Vivian, Haymitch also said to tell you he found that rich old lady you wanted him to find."

Ruth looked at me; her eyebrows rose silently questioning me. "I told Haymitch he had better find some rich old lady that thought Danny was the cutest thing ever to sponsor him," I blurt out.

"I don't think you really want that Vivian," Jonah piped up. "Haymitch told me, well, let's just say rich old ladies in the Capitol don't sponsor young tributes because they think of them as their grandsons."

"What?" I asked. "What exactly do you mean Jonah?" Jonah and Mary Grace exchanged a glance.

"Tell her Jonah. They need to know what happens if he comes out. Haymitch said to tell them," Mary Grace whispered.

"Sponsors are making an investment Vivian; they expect some return on that apparently. The Capitol has no problem with killing children, apparently they don't have a problem pimping them out either. Haymitch has already lost everything so he avoids most of the buying and selling; the Capitol doesn't have anyone to hang over his head as a threat. Its part of why he is the way he is. He told me that if he avoids people and doesn't care about anyone then he can't hurt anyone ever again," Jonah said.

"So, you're telling me that if Haymitch does manage to somehow get Danny out of that hell hole of an arena that the Capitol is going _sell _him?" I hissed. We were talking as quietly as we could without being overheard. It took every ounce of strength I had in me not to scream.

"Yes, that's what I'm telling you," Jonah said flatly. "So just know now that if Danny does come home he is never going to be the same person ever again and you will all, every one of you, forever be in danger. They will use you against him to get him to do whatever they want him to do. Haymitch's family wasn't just killed because of his stunt with the force field; they didn't really care about that. Before he left the Capitol he refused to sleep with a man who had sent him several sponsor gifts. Haymitch is the example that the Capitol holds up to all the other Victors. What happened to Haymitch will happen to them if they don't go along with whatever is asked of them."

"Danny knows Vivian," Mary Grace whispered. "Haymitch told him the night before the games started. He said that he couldn't send in someone related to any one of us without them knowing the whole truth. He said we used to be his friends but he can't be our friend anymore because it's not safe; but we at least deserve the truth."

"How long have you all known this?" I asked, staring around at my friends, open mouthed.

"I've known since Maysilee died," Mary Grace said. "When Haymitch brought me that money after he won his games he told me. He told me he wanted her to come out alive, but after he found out what happens to Victors he was glad that she didn't. I was really angry at him. I screamed at him, punched him, told him I hated him that I just wanted my sister back and he just stood there and took it. All he said was "I thought you should know." Then he just walked away. The next time I saw him he was drunk. Has been ever since. That's why he doesn't work harder to bring tributes home."

"He said he wanted to bring a tribute home" I said through clenched teeth. "He told me that in the train station!"

"Of course he does Vivian," Jonah interjected. "But he also doesn't want them to live the rest of their lives under the Capitol's thumb. So, he just let's whatever happens happen. He can't save them, even if he helps them get out of the arena he can't save them from what comes next. At some point Danny might have to decide if he wants to win or not. But it will be his choice, not Haymitch's. Haymitch is working as hard as he can for Danny right now because he's your brother. He's one of us. But if Danny doesn't want it then you need to know that it was Danny's choice Vivian. It won't be because Haymitch isn't doing all he can for him right now. In fact, he probably slept with the old lady for the money so remember that when he comes home ok?" I nod my silent understanding.

"Garret, did you know?" I quietly ask my husband.

"No," he says, I didn't know Viv. I would have told you if I did." I look at Jonah and Mary Grace for confirmation.

"He didn't know," Mary Grace whispered. We all just sit silently on the benches, staring at the screen, each other, all of us lost in our thoughts. Finally Ruth speaks.

"It's getting late, we should get you home Vivian. You need to rest ok? Garret, make sure she lays down when she gets home and puts her feet up, her ankles are looking swollen. "I can't help myself. I let out a snort of laughter. Garret and Mary Grace look at me like I'm insane.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," I say, taking a deep breath and pulling myself back together. "We've got killing and prostitution to worry about and Ruth is talking about my ankles!" I start laughing again. It fills me with some kind of insane relief. I have to be crazy to be sitting here laughing when so much darkness was surrounding me.


End file.
